mayhem

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmeɪhɛm/ (UK); /ˈmeɪˌ(h)ɛm/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English maheym,^[2][3] borrowed from Anglo-Norman maihem,^[4][5] related to Old French mahaigne (“injury”)^[4][2][5] and mahaignier “to maim”,^[4][2][5] from Vulgar Latin *mahanare.^[4][2] Its ultimate origin is unknown, perhaps Germanic;^[4][2][6][3] Merriam-Webster and RHWU compare Middle High German meidem “gelding” and Old Norse meitha “to injure”.^[6][3] The verb maim comes from the same source.^[5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

In law, the crime of violently injuring a person so as to make them less able to defend themselves.^[5][7][3]

Semantic evolution

The legal sense was extended to crippling or disfiguring any part of the body.^[6][3] By the 19th century the word was used generally of violent behaviour and wilful damage,^[5][7][2] and later of rowdy confusion or chaos.^[7][3]

Timeline

• probably before 1300 – maym, a mutilation;^[2] RHWU gives 1350–1400.^[3]
• 1472–3 – the legal sense;^[7] Etymonline gives the late 15th century.^[5]
• 1534 – verb, to inflict mayhem on.^[7]
• 1868 – any violent damage or disorder, by Barnhart's date;^[2] the OED gives 1870.^[7]
• 1976 – rowdy confusion, chaos.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. (law) The crime of wilfully maiming or crippling a person.
2. Violent injury or wilful destruction.
3. A state of violent disorder or rowdy confusion; havoc.

Verb

1. To maim or injure violently.

Related words

• maim

References

1. [1] Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
3. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
4. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
5. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. [1] [2] [3] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press